The hardest part of keeping this blog going is keeping enough of an ‘outsider’ perspective to know what to right about. All of this has become normal to me – living by the sea in a small town with two convenience stores and a hospital the size of my house.

Otobe from above the cape.

Often it’s hard to think of what to write, mainly because I end up thinking you all couldn’t possibly be interested in the minutiae of my life. I know that isn’t true, judging from the amount of time I spent searching for that same minutiae before I came here. Worse, I don’t carry my camera with me as much as I should.

Cape Tate

So I turn to you once more, gentle reader: what would you like to know? Some of you have been in contact with me and heard mention of something I should write about – what should I elaborate on? I spend 40 a week either at a desk in the Board of Education, out driving to schools, or teaching in schools. On the weekends I drive to Esashi or Hakodate for fun, or rent movies or go to local restaurants. I wish I could show you my students, but I can only tell you stories about them and their lives.